Easley's Pregnancy Prevention Month - May

I will never forget my 4th grader coming home last year, upset as I have ever seen him, because one of his dear friends that he has been in class with since kindergarten, came to school with a pack of cigarettes and offered he and several others one in the bathroom. FOURTH GRADE. I was completely blown out of the water....so if you think, like many have already said, that they don't hear or know someone doing these things (smoking, sex, alcohol), you are dead wrong. This young child had gotten the cigarettes from guess who? an older cousin. And no one is immune, if I dropped this child's name, half the people on here would know who I was talking about, or know his family. They would also know how good of parents his are, by that name. It just goes to show you, if presented in the age appropriate platform, KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. I would simply attend this session with my child.

 

Parenting wise, I cannot speak from experience...my son is only 3 1/2. However, having worked with middle schoolers and having friends that are strong role models and very involved in the lives of their middle schoolers at church....my eyes have been opened WIDE about what is going on. I am not saying that sitting in on this talk is the right choice, but waiting to educate our children on certain topics until high school is too late. You would be amazed, appalled, shocked to know what is going on in our middle schools. There are sex rings, sex parties....all sorts of things (and these are OUR kids, our good, Christian, well-raised kids) It is a whole new ball game out there and if we don't prepare and educate our children and youth, their friends and society will. A great, eye-opening book about what our kids are exposed to everday is: (the scary part...it starts earlier than 13)

Teaching True Love to a Sex-at-13 Generation
The Ultimate Guide for Parents
Eric & Leslie Ludy
Paperback

Again, I can only hope and pray I do the right thing too when the time comes for educating my own children.

All the best!

 

I think its a great idea , kids nowadays are having sex all the time and at very young ages , I have 3 sons and i know that the perpresure they in dear is far worse then say when i was young. I had my first son at 16 and yes i hope this don't happen to my son . I would never say i regret having him at such a young age but if there had been things like this in the schools maybe it wouldn't have happen so soon . I am all for this . My son also came home with this letter from school and i signed it fast ..lol He doesn't want to go and thinks he knows all about what would happen and how much his life would change , I for one don't believe that he actually knows . This is a great thing for all teenagers . When we have kids stars on TV that end up getting pregnant and having to quit a show , do you think your kid doesn't hear and know about that . Teen sex is all over and it needs to be stopped . Teenagers and even adults putting babies in toilets at the local McDonald's is absolutely outrageous and disgusting , this might help . It should have happen sooner .

 

When in elementary school, in 5th grade, they have a short talk with boys and girls and give them a little bag with goodies (tampax, etc.). I, as a parent, audited my daughter's class and found that the children were all embarrassed and giggly. In 7th grade we had the same thing that you are getting asked about, Cleo. I audited, once again, and found that it was extremely useful, some items I had not gone over (age appropriate) and other things other parents will never go over with their child.

Oral sex happens with middle school children more than people would like to believe. Peer pressure and all, I think it is wise to start exposing a child to the consequences.

I am an advocate of teaching them contraception and about STDs but I believe each family should make the decision when and if they ever talk to their child about those items.

Grace

 

It is a good program. I let both my kids attend it and it really was about the struggles of being a teen parent and how in reality they really were not ready to have sex but felt pressured and ended up a parent. We just continued the conversation when they got home and were talking about it. I let them tell me about the program and asked them if they really understood what those kids were trying to say and then I just took things a step further.

I agree about things changing in a NY minute because it sure did for my son. One minute he thought girls had cooties and the next he was checking them out and really paying attention to the ads for swimsuits and underclothes. I think the first time I really noticed it was when we were shopping and a girl went by in a pair of shorts and my son did a double take and made a little "wooowooo" noise.

If they had another one, I would sign and let them attend it again.